Dress-suit case.



. C. ONEILL.

l DRESS suiT cAsE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 6| |914.

J. C. ONEILL.

DRESS SUIT CASE.

APPLICATION FILED Juni 6.1914.

Patented Aug. 17,1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

JOSEPH C. ONEILL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

DRESS-SUIT CASE.

vvSpecification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Aug. 17, 1915.

i Application led .Tune 6, 1914. Serial N0. 843,445.

To all whom. it may concern Be it known that I, JOSEPH C. ONEILL,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York, borough of Brooklyn,

county of Kings, and State of New York,l

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dress-'Suit Cases, of which` the following is a full, clear, and exact description. V

This invention relates more particularly to an extended or foldable dress suit case or similar device in which articles of apparel can be placed without creasing or4 folding and which device is adapted to hold various kinds of articles.

' One of the principal objects of theinvention is to provide a' simple and eiiicient dress suit case having a plurality of mem-, bers which are hinged together so as to adapt the members to be moved to an unfolded position and in such position adapted to have large articles of apparel, such as sults of4 clothes, dresses,etc., supported and' hung therein in a manner similar to placing such articles in a wardrobe or similar place, and which members, while 'the articles are vthus held, may be moved to a-y folded position and locked without any folding or creasing whatever of the large articles placed within the device. i

Other objects of the invention are to provide simple 'and eiicient means whereby the large articles of apparel may be held in such a Way that pressure will not be made against such articles by other articles placed within the suit case; to provide means whereby various toilet and other articles may be properly held within the device; to provide means for separating the large articles from the smaller ones and to cause a tension to be exerted against a certain part of the articles to force the same with a gentle bend within one member of the suit case; to provide simple and eflicient vpartitions and means for supporting the same within the casing; and to provide means whereby collars and like articles may be held.

Another object of the invention is to pro- -vide an. extensible or foldable suit case which may have the general form and appearanc(J of a suit case as ordinarily used and which maybe made of leather, wickerwork, or of any other suitable material.

A further object of the invention is to provide a suit case in which one member vforms a receiver for a part of the larger articles placed within the device and which -m`ember is ofsuch a form as will prevent ready access of water in case the suit case. is placed on the ground in wet weather.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a suit case which is simple in c onstruction and which may be readily made and assembled. V

A still further object of the invention is to provide means whereby the members may :be suitably lheld with relation to each other and one member positively locked to ano ther member when in a folded or closed position.

With these and other objects in view, the invention will be hereinafter more particularly described with reference to the accompanyingv drawings, which form a part of' this specification, and will then be pointed out in the claims at the end of thel description. "D l In the drawings, Figure lis al perspective view of one form of device embodying my invention, showing the said device in an eX- tended or unfolded position. Fig. 2 is a section, taken on the line II-II of Fig. 3, with the parts of the device in an open or extended position. Fig. 3 is a plan View of the device with the parts in an open position as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 4 is a cross section of the device in a closed or folded position. Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view, partly insection, showing ,how one of the partitions may be supported within the device. Fig..6 shows a somewhat different form of partition; and Fig. 7 is a section taken on the line VII-VII ofv Fig. 6.

The body of the device comprises essentially a bottom member 107 aback or rear member ll, and a front or top member 12.

The member 10 is box-like in form having end walls. 13 and front and rear walls 14. i

The members l1 and 12 are hinged, at 15, by leather strips or otherwise, to the upper edge of the front and rear walls of the member 10 so that in an open `position they may be moved outward to form an extended device as shown in Figs. 1 to 3, or the said members 1l and 12 may be moved on their hinges toward each other to 'a folded `orclosed position as shown in Fig. .4. y The member 11 has a wall 16 which when in a folded position forms substantially a continuation of the rear wall 14 of the member 10, and a top wall 17 and end walls 18,

which latter are adapted to form a continua# the member 11 for the purpose of holding toilet or other articles which one may desire to carry within the device. At the corners of the member 11 arebands 22 which may be tied together at their free ends to hold collars, cuffs, or other articles so that-theyv will' not be displaced while the being transported'. f

In order that large articles as suits of clothes, dresses, etc., may be supported properly within the device without being first folded and thereby avoid creasing "said ardevice l is ticles, I provide the device with' means.

whereby such articles may besuspendedvby hanging orI otherwise, such means beingv capable of various constructions'. As shown, a rod 23 is held to brackets 24 on the Itopa wall17 of the lmember 11 and about which rod may be arranged one or more-hangersy on which the coat, trousers, or.other garment Y hung or supported from a hook by means of is adapted t'o be held when the members are in the position shown in Figs.`1to '3. When in this condition, the entire device may be a carrying handle or strap 25 which is held to the wall 17 of the member 11, or the de l vice may be arranged uponH the ioor as'V pre# ferred. The suit of clothes without any folding whatever is placed within the vde- 'vice lengthwisel thereof'` and 4in this case the suit will extend over athe bottom member 10. Two partitions. 26 and 27 are, provided,

the former held to the member 11 .and the latter to the 0member 12. The partition 26 when the clothes'are placed in position, is,

of course,'removed, and tofpermit the lsaid partition to b e readily attached-to or det,

tached from the member 11, a plurality of socket piecesv 28 are formed on the ends .of brackets 29. These socket pieces 28 may be l of any desired form and ^may be slotted and are adapted toreceive large slotted ends 30 of a fastening device or member 31. This member 31, Fig. 5, may be carried by an arm or bracket 32 which projects outward from the trayor partition 26. There may be any suitable number ofthese detachable fastening devices for the partition v26 though the drawings 'show four, one at-each side, "-edge and two at the outer edge thereof.

So far as the socket pieces 28 and the fastening element 31 are concerned, the con- @5 struction is'substantially the same as that of the ordinary glove fastener, except, possibly, as to the size and -stiffness of the parts and the means whereby .these parts are mounted,

the construction being such that the fastening elements are readily separable from and attachable to each other in order that the tray or partition 26 may -be held to or removed from the device. The tray or partition 26 may have its body 33 somewhat .smaller than the interior of the tray 11 and may be of solid veneer or other material with a suitable covering therefor or may be of a skeleton form covered or not aspreferred. This `partition is suspended within the member-11 so as to provide a space 345 yunder the same for the clothescwhen hung 'D upon the bar or rod 23, and said partition extends beyond the inner edge of the mem' ber 11 and is provided with a rounded por-v tion 35 along one edge which when the device is folded for transporting purposes, the said end 35 will extend into the member 10. The purpose of thisA is to provide a space inforder that the 0weight ofl otherarticles placed within the device will not be on the clothes within the space 34; and to cause the =end"35 0f the partition 26 to forcee the clothes or apparel into' the bottom 10.with i a gentle bendand without any sharp crease so that'lthe garmentwhen i'n'positionfor transporting urpose will'be substantially U-shaped in orm and simply bent within` the member: 10 without any creasing what- 36 ofthe'vfpartition or tray 27 which end 36 is rounded similar to the end 35 for the reasons stated.- If a suit of clothes is being carried, the tray .27 may rest directly upon thatportion' which extends into the top member 12 of the-suit case, but if a womans p dress is to be carried without lcreasing or lfolding, in that case the partition 27 issup- 4 ported 'away from thefront of the member y 1 12y by a suitable space,as 37, andvif of sufcient length may' thenv be folded" about the "110 partition ,27- over the ftop'portion thereof.

.ever The garment is passed under the end The partition 27 is suspended somewhat.

Vgliferently from athe partitionf26, said par-.zV titlon being held to said member- 12 by'flex-v ble straps or members 38 located at-the outer edge of said partition. y

The flexible connections 38 mayA be *detach- -v able bysuitable fastening devices, as fasten-v ing devices vsimilar to that of glove fasteners, or may 'be permanently attached thereto, and said flexible members 38 may .be-held to the member 12 by metal-loops or brackets 39. A plurality of pivoted fingers or mem#` bers 40 are heldat the opposite edgesof the partition 27 andf'said fingers areI adapted to be positioned alinement with-the edgel of said partitionor` to be moved at an angle thereto so as to form feet-to separate said partition fromthe frontof' the member 12 in order to provide a suitable space between said member 12 and the partition as already.

described. The partition 27 is suspended as shown When the case is in a folded condition by the flexible members 38 and the Weight of l vided on the partition 26 if desired, and said I .partition 26 is so located as to provide a space outside of the same for placing various articles of apparel thereon.

A stay and locking device 43 is provided on each side of the suit case for the purpose of holding the member 11 properly to the member l0 in both the open and the closed position. The device 43 is of a special construction and is not claimed specificallly herein as it forms' subject matter of a separate application Serial No. 843,446 filed of even date herewith. As shown, each device 43 comprises an extensible member 44, one end'r of Which is pivoted, at 45, to a bracket 46 secured to one of the end walls of the suit case member 10. The extensible member 45 is bar-like in form and has an elongated slot 47, one end of said slot being'hook-shaped, as at 48, and adapted when the suitcase is in a folded or closed positionto pass about a p projection 49 in a casing 50. A slide having a iinger portion 51 is movable in the casing 50' and this slide has a pin mounted thereon, not shown, which is also adapted to enter the slot 47 and serves to limit the outvvard movement of the member 44. The member 44 is intended to be of such length and is constructed in such a Way that the back member 11 may move relatively to the mem- 'ber 10 to the position shovvn by dotted line 52 of Fig. 2, the member l2 of the suit case being adapted to move also on its hinges to the position shown i dotted line 53 of said figure. The members 11 and 12 may thus move to a position to prevent canting of the member 10 in order`that the same may lie flat and the said device, When in an extended position, is adapted to rest directly on the Hoor or other support or to be suspended by means of the handle 25. When the member 1l is in the positionshovvn in Figs. 1 to 3, the members 44 serve as stays and braces for the member 1l, and When'the member 11 is moved to the folded position shown in Fig. 4, the hooked end 48 ofY the members 44 Will engage the pins 49 and positively lock the members 10 and 11in such folded position and substantially at right angles to each other. By moving the slides through the finger pieces 51, the members 44 may be released fromthe pins 49 to permit the mem-4 ber 11 to be moved to an unfolded or extended position. y

The case or other device is intended to be provided With locks and clasps of the usual or of any preferred form and said case may have straps 54 which are secured to the member 10 and Which have one end thereofextending about the member 12 and the other endv provided With 'a buckle and extending about the member 1l so that When the members are brought to a folded or closed position, the straps as Well as the clasps may serve to positively hold the members together ready for transportation or for other purposes.

a In Figs. 6 and 7, a somewhat diiferent form of partition is provided. Here the body 55 is of a skeleton-formvand has a central part 56. This part 56 is cut away,- as at 57, and guided in said cut-away portion is a stem 58 of a rod 59. The stem 58 is provided with 'pins 60 Which are adapted to engage shoulders of the cut-away part 57 to limit its voutward movement, and said support is normally forced outward by a spring 61, one end of which is held tothe stem 58 and the other end to the part 56. The rod 59 corresponds to and is for the same purpose as the ends 35 and36 of the partitions 26 and 27 respectively, and instead of the ends being fixed, the rod 59 is yieldingly held vto the body of the partition through the spring 61. It Will be understood that the body of the `partition shown in Fig. 6 may be covered or not as desired and that the construction therein shown may be substituted for either or both of the partitions 26 and 27.

, From the foregoing, it will be evident that a simple and efiicient dress suit case or similar device is provided whereby clothes such as suits or dresses may be supported or carried therein without folding or creasing the same; that simple means is provided whereby various articles may be held Within the device Without exerting any pressureA Whatever on the clothes; that simple means is provided whereby tWo of the members may be properly held With respect to each other in either of their folded or unfolded position; that simple Irieans is -provided whereby partitions may be arranged within the members of the suit case and so support- Aed that their ends may be made to rest Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters 1. A device of the character described, comprising a box-like bottom member, a

back member hinged thereto, a front member hinged to the bottom member, and independent devices for connecting the bottom vmember to the back member which serve both as stays and as locking means. 2. A. device of the character describedhaving `a bottom member, a plurality of members connected to the bottom member,

and independent devices for connecting the bottom member to one of said membersV bottom member together and forming a stay when in an unfolded position and a lock when the back member and the bottom member are brought to a folded or closed position. Y

4. A device of 'the character described, comprising a shallow` substantially box-like bottom.member, a` back member hinged at one edge of the bottom member, a shallow front member hinged along one edge of the bottom member, and means having an extension member connecting the back member and bottom member together and forming a stay when in an unfolded position and a lock when the back member and the bottom member are brought to a folded or closed position.

, 5., A device of the character described, comprising a substantially box-like bottom member, a member hinged at one edge of the bottom member, a second member hinged along another edge of the bottom member, and means connecting one of the members and the bottom member together and forming a-stay when in an unfolded position and a lock when said latter member and the bottom member are brought to a folded or closed positin.

6. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a back memvber hinged atone edge of the bottom member and comprising rear, side and top walls,` a shallow front member hinged along one edge of the bottom member and having front, top and 'end walls, and means connecting the back member and .bottom mem;

berv together and forming a stay when 1n `an unfolded position and a lock when the back member and the bottom member are brought to a folded or closed positi'oui.v

7 A device of the character described, comprising a substantially box-like bottom member, a back member hinged to the bottom member along one edge thereof, a front member hinged along the opposite edge of the bottom member, and partitions supported in the back and front members and having a part projecting beyond said members so as to extend partly into the bottom pnember when the device is in a closed posiion.

8. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a back member hinged t`o thebottom member, a front member hinged to the bottom member, and partitions supported in the back and front members and having a part projecting beyond said members.

9. A device ofthe character described, comprising a substantially box-like bottom member, a back member hinged to the bottom member at one edge thereof, a front member hinged at the opposite edge of the bottom member, and a partition supported in the back member and having a part projecting beyond said member so as to extend partly into theb'ottoin member when the device is in a closed position.

l0. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a front member and a back member hinged together and Aadapted to be extended to an open position insubstantially the same plane, and a rod serving as a hanger and held in one of said members by which rod articles of apparel maybe supported within the device.

11. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a front member and a back member hinged together and adapted to be extended to an open position in substantially the same plane, and means held in one of said members 'by which articles of apparel may be supported within the device.

12. A device of the character described having abottom member, a front memberA and a back member hinged together and adapted to be extended to an open position, and a rod-serving as a hanger and held in oneof said members by which rod articles of apparel may be supported within the devlce.

13. A. device of the character described,

comprising a bottom member, a front memberhinged to said bottom member, a back member hinged to the bottom member opposite the frontl member, a substantially rectangular partition arranged in the back member and having one end projecting be-4 yond the same, and means whereby the partition may be detachably held to said back member. Y

14. A device of the character described, comprisin a bottom member, a back member hinge to said bottom member, a front member hinged to the bottom member, a partition arranged Within the front member and flexibly connected thereto and having one end projecting beyond said member, fingers pivotally held at the edges of said partition, and means held to the partition whereby articles may be fastened and held thereto.

V15. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a back member hinged to said bottom member, a front member hinged to the bottom member, and a partition arranged Within the front member and flexibly connected thereto and having one end projecting beyond said member.

16. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, 'a back member hinged to said bottom member, a front member hinged to the bottom member, a

partition arranged within the front member, and fingers pivotally held at the edges of said partition.

17. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom member, a back member hinged to said bottom member, a front member hinged to the bottom member, a partition arranged Within the front member and flexibly connected thereto and having one end projecting beyond said members, and fingers pivotally held at the edges of said partition.

This specification signed and witnessed this 4th day of June, A. D. 1914.

JOSEPH C. ONEILL.

Witnesses:

LESTER C. TAYLOR, C. BARTELS. 

